Picking-bag.



E. WOODRUM.

PICKING BAG.

APPLICATIQN FILED JUNE 20. l9l7- Patented June 25, 1918.

nvmvron 59/?! MYOU/PU/W,

FFTF.

rioKInG-BAG.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 20, 1917. Serial No. 175,838.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EARL VVooDRUM, a citizen of vthe'United States, and a resident of Glencove, in the county of Pierce and State of Washington, have invented an Improvement in Picking-Bags, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in picking bags, especially apple picking bags, and it consists in the combinations, constructions and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a bag having a mouth which is held open by a metal loop at its upper end, the lower end of the bag being open but being provided with a drawing string by means of which the lower open end may be drawn together, and having a hook secured to the metal loop through which the string may be passed and firmly secured, thereby permitting the bottom of the bag to be raised and fastened at any position, thereby preventing the es-. 1gape of fruit through the bottom of the ag. y 1

Another object of my invention is to provide a device of the type described which may be quickly unfastened so as to permit the lowering of the bottom of the bag to increase the capacity of the bag.

A further object is to provide a draw string which is free from knots, and which, therefore, is not dependent upon the engagement of a knot of the string for the suc-. cessful holding of the string in the hook.

A still further object is to provide a novel form of suspending means for the bag which insures the proper position of the bag on the body of the user at all times.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, in which- Figure l is a perspective view showing the bag in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the lower portion of the bag showing the draw string in position.

Fig. 3 is a view of the lower portion of the bag showing the draw string drawn up to close the mouth of the bag.

Fig. 4: is a perspective view of the holding hook.

metal 2 made in the shapeshown in Fig. 1.

It will be observed that this loop is curved on one side to fit the body and on the other side is bowed outwardly. Preferably the material of the bag is brought up over the metal loop so as to cover it. On the bowed side, that is to say on the outer side of the bag, is a hook 3 like that shown in Fig. 4 this hook having a space 4 between the body portion and the bent up end which is relatively narrow. The hook may be made integral with the metal loop 2, or may be socured to it.

The bottom portion of the bag is shown in Figs. 2 and 3. It is open and is provided with a draw string 6. This draw string is secured to the bag at a point 7 at the center of the bag near the bottom thereof. It will also be observed that this string is secured to the bag on the side of the bag neXt to the body of the user. The two ends of the string are passed through eyelets 8 and continue on through eyelets 10 in strengthening tabs 11 which are secured to the edges of the bag, the ends of the string being free.

The bag is suspended from the shoulders of the user by a pair of straps 12, which are crossed over the wearers back after the man ner of ordinary suspenders, and each strap is provided with a snap hook 18 which engages a ring 14. Small suspending straps 15 connect the rings 14 with that portion of the loop 2 next to the body of the wearer,

Patented June 25, bars. v

while other suspending straps 16 connect the bowed portion of the loop with the rings 14, the connections of the straps 15 and 16 with the loop 2 being such that the straps will not slip on the loop but will remain permanently in position.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device the operation thereof may be readily understood. Fig. 2 shows the position of the bag when empty. The user of the bag first pulls on the ends of the draw string 6, thus partially closing the open end of the bag, in the manner shown in Fig. 3. The end is then raised, that is to say bent back upon the body por tion of the bag, and suspended by doubly wrapping the ends of the string 6 around the hook 3. The bag is then in the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. It will be observed that the end of the bag is drawn clear up to the hook 3. This reduces the capacity of the bag to its minimum, so that in picking apples, for instance, they will not have far to fall. Now as the bag is gradually filled one may let out the string 6 by merely unwrapping it and then rewrapping it around the hook so that the top of the layer of fruit may be maintained at substantially a uniform distance from the upper edge of the bag until the bag is well filled. I have stated that one purpose of this invention is to do away with knots in string at any point is also an advantage,

since one does not have to take the string out of the hook to do this. All that is necessary is to unwrap one hitch and then to pull on the string until the right position is reached, whereupon the wrapping of'the string around the hook once will hold the bag securely, even when the bag is full of fruit. In fact the greater the weight the more securely will the string be secured to i the hook.

Themeans for suspending the bag keeps the mouth of the latter in a substantially horizontal position no matter whether the user leans forward or backward, since the I hooks 13 will slide in the rings 14:. 1 Moreover the suspending members 15 and 16 are so arranged that they hold the bag securely without interfering with the movements of the user. It will be observed that these ens-- pending members are placed far over toward the side of the bag, but there are two suspending members for the front as well as for the rear, so that the bag is firmly supported.

When the bag is filled it is only necessary to unwrap the string from the hook and lower the string, when the weight of the fruit will cause the mouth of the bag to spread open. It will be observed that the string 6 is secured to one side of the bag only so that the bag will instantly open under the weight of the fruit, as stated.

I claim:

A picking bag comprising a body portion having open upper and lower ends, a stifi'ening loop for maintaining the upper end in open position, a hook carried by the loop, the end of the hook being bent back upon the body portion thereof to Provide a relatively narrow space between the end and the body portion, a draw string secured to the central portion of the bag near the bottom on one side of the bag, strengthening tabs having eyelets, said strengthening tabs being disposed at the opposite edges of the bag, eyelets carried by the bag between said strengthening tabs and the point where the string is secured, the ends of the string passing through said last-named eyelets and then through the eyelets in the strengthening tabs for drawing the lower end of the bag together, said string being adapted to be wound about the hook at any point between the strengthening tabs and the ends of the string for frictional suspension from the hook.

, EARL WOODRUM.

Copies of' this patent inay be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

